New Year's Resolution

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Off Camera

Scene 1

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Supreme Championship Wrestling’s End of the Year Special is coming up just over the horizon and their annual tradition of the end of the year battle royal will take center stage as many superstars, both within and outside of SCW, will attempt to win it all and take home a grand prize of two hundred fifty thousand dollars and a brand new car.

Still, not everyone is doing this for the money and the car.  Many of those entering this battle royal are already rich, or at least well-off enough to not need it.  Still there are others who could use the money and the car but there is something to be gained from a victory in this battle royal that is more important to them than material possessions.

Two such individuals come from the famous Jones Wrestling Family.  Kayla Jones is one half of The Sisterhood and is a former SCW World Tag Team Champion with Angelica Jones.  She has been tag teaming with her older sister Angelica Jones since her arrival in Supreme Championship Wrestling and, in many ways, has been written off as a tag team wrestler, despite twice being a world champion in other companies.

So, for Kayla Jones, the end of the year battle royal in SCW isn’t so much about the money and the car as it is about making an impact and proving to her peers in SCW that she can get the job done on her own without assistance from her sister.  Funny thing is, while Kayla will be striving her very best for a victory, winning isn’t even necessarily a requirement for her to achieve her goal.  If Kayla lasts a long time or eliminates several people from the match or both then clearly she would have made a case for her being just as good a singles athlete as she is a tag team wrestler.

And yet Kayla Jones isn’t the only member of the famous Jones Wrestling Family to enter this battle royal with ulterior motives.  Kayla’s oldest niece, her sister’s oldest daughter, Marie Annabelle Jones, is also entering this SCW End of the Year Battle Royal.

Marie ‘s goal is similar to Kayla’s with one minor difference.    Marie does not care about the money or the car, although both would be nice.  Like Kayla, Marie needs to make an impact and looks to use this battle royal to do just that.  But her motives and drive for wanting to make an impact in that manner are different.

For Marie, you see, is an IWC superstar and twice had opportunities to become IWC World Champion, twice she failed.  She suffered an injury and IWC has kept her out of action.  Marie is certain she is ready to return but IWC won’t let her return just yet.  Marie hopes that a good performance in this battle royal will prove to IWC and the rest of the wrestling world that she is down but not out and that she is ready to make her grand return to the wrestling ring.

Kayla can sympathize for her niece’s situation.  Considering she has been in this wrestling business a lot longer than Marie has and, during that time, has been in all positions, as a wrestler, executive, trainer, manager, and now wrestler again, Kayla knows what it is like for injuries and even the company to sideline you when you want so badly to return.  Kayla herself has a history of neck injuries, neck injuries that almost ended her career.

As much as she loves her niece, though, and as much luck as she may wish her in her future with IWC, Kayla wants this win at the end of the year special and she wants it bad.  She has no problem helping Marie up to a point but when push comes to shove, if it comes down to just the two of them, then all family relations are going to be thrown out of the window.  It will be every woman for herself and Kayla will do whatever is necessary to win.

Currently Kayla finds herself in her hotel suite in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.  Some may find a trip to Montreal for a wrestling event to be cumbersome, due to the dual languages and this being French-Canada, after all.  But one thing Kayla and her sister Angelica shared in common was a love of the French language and culture.  Both of them are fluent in French.  The End of the Year Special being held here is no problem at all for either woman.

Kayla is standing in front of a full length mirror, gazing and admiring her reflection.  She is wearing a knee length black leather skirt, black high heeled pumps, and a long sleeved black sweater.  Her long red hair hangs unrestrained to shoulder length.  She turns around to find her sister Angelica, leaning back in a recliner.

“How do I look?”

Kayla asks this while striking a pose.  Angelica studies her and nods her head.

“You look good…”

“Thanks!”

“…assuming the whole goth thing is what you’re going for.”

Kayla frowns. “Goth?”

“Yes, all that black.” Angelica shakes her head. “It’s not you, Kay.”

Kayla turns her nose up at Angelica and then turns around to face the full length mirror again, gazing at herself.  She smiles at the reflection before turning back around to face her older sister.

“I don’t care what you think, sis.  I happen to like this shirt and skirt.”

“Like it or not, it still makes you look goth.”

“Regardless, I’m ready to go out.”

Angelica tilts her head to one side and frowns. “Go out where, exactly?”

A look of mischief forms upon Kayla’s face.

“Trenton and I are going to see the sights here in Montreal.” Kayla shuts her eyes and sighs. “It has been a long time since I have been to Canada.  I love it here.”

Trenton Snow is another potential wild card in this end of the year battle royal.  He and Kayla are dating and he is also in the battle royal.  Now he has said he would prefer it if Kayla were to win it all.  So perhaps there will be no problems to come of it, but still the potential for a problem is always there, especially in a battle royal style scenario.

Kayla Jones walks over and sits down on the comfy red sofa that is located in the room a few feet away from Angelica.   The elder sister leans forward in her recliner and places a hand on Kayla’s knee.  She frowns.

“Well I hate to be the bearer of bad news but you may have to delay that sightseeing tour a little bit.”

“What’s wrong?”

Angelica smiles sheepishly. “Your niece needs your help.”

Kayla rolls her eyes. “Which one?”

“Marie.” Angelica begins, leaning back in the chair and sighing. “It’s the end of the year battle royal for SCW.  Marie is really putting a lot of pressure upon herself to do well and I think she could use a good motivational speech, or at least some kind words.”

“She’s putting pressure on herself?” Kayla chuckles. “And that’s my problem?”

“No, but…”

                                                               

“She should deal with it herself.” Kayla remarks harshly. “Just like she’ll have to look out for herself in the battle royal.”

Angelica leans forward again and grabs her sister’s hands. “Kayla, please!”

Kayla sighs deeply and finally nods her head. “Ok, ok, fine.  Don’t beg.  Begging doesn’t suit you.”

“So you’ll do it?  You’ll talk to her?”

“Yes, I’ll talk to her.” Kayla points a finger at Angelica. “But this is the only help she gets.  After this it’s every person for themselves in that battle royal.”

Angelica nods in agreement. “I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

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Off Camera

Scene 2

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The sun is shining down bright and warm in a Carolina blue sky here in Montreal, Quebec, Canada in the parking lot of a Gold’s Gym.  Kayla Jones sits in her car staring up at the front door, readying herself for the eventual conversation that is to come; a conversation with her niece, Marie Annabelle Jones.

Being here at a Gold’s Gym to talk to her niece is not her idea of a good time.  She would rather not be focusing so much of her time and energy on this end of the year battle royal.  There will be plenty of time for that.  She wanted to use this time to see the sights with her boyfriend Trenton.  Unfortunately Angelica insists that this is necessary.

Call it arrogance if you like, but Kayla Jones is confident that she is the woman to beat in that end of the year battle royal.  Victory comes through her and anyone who underestimates her is automatically doomed.  The battle royal is that simple, as far as Kayla is concerned.  There is no pressure for her to perform.  She knows she will perform well and, hopefully, win it all.

And yet her niece seems to have other thoughts.  Marie seems to be putting a lot of pressure upon herself to do well.  Marie seems to doubt herself and she isn’t sure she can win.  That’s not Kayla’s problem, and yet Kayla is expected to talk to her, to help her feel better, because they are both in the same match.

Nevertheless, Kayla told Angelica she would come and talk to Marie and she will do so.  Kayla opens her car door and begins to make her way up through the parking lot and to the front door of the Gold’s Gym.  Kayla pulls the door open and steps inside.  Immediately Kayla approaches the front desk and whips out a picture of her niece, Marie Annabelle Jones, showing it to the young black haired lady at the front desk.

“Hi, is my niece here by any chance?  I was told she was.”

“Um…”

The woman scans the area looking for any sight of Marie.  Eventually her eyes perk up and she points ahead of her towards the heavy bag area near the back of the gym.

“She’s back there with the heavy bag.”

“Ok, thank you.”

Kayla turns and walks away from the desk.  She walks around the walking track that leads towards the back of the gym area.  Back there she finds the heavy bag where her niece Marie is.  Marie is wearing black adidas windpants, white tennis shoes, and a white t-shirt with her long red hair pulled into a ponytail in the back.  Marie doesn’t notice Kayla having arrived.  Instead she is just lacing into the punching bag with ferocity and intensity.

“Umm, Marie?”

The younger Jones doesn’t hear Kayla.  That or she’s ignoring her, one or the other.  Instead, Marie continues pound away at the heavy bag with rights and lefts, and kicks.  Kayla takes in a deep breath and sighs and finally tries to speak out again.

“Marie…”

Still Marie doesn’t hear her aunt Kayla.  By now, Kayla is losing patience.  She shouts.

“MARIE!”

“Huh?”

Marie turns around and is slightly startled at first to find that someone has been staring at her from behind.  But when she sees that person was Kayla Jones, her aunt, she just smiles warmly and waves.

“Oh, hi Aunt Kayla!”

The two women embrace in a tight hug.  After breaking the embrace Marie’s warm smile contorts into a look of confusion.

“Um, what are you doing here, Aunt Kayla?  I thought you were going out with Trenton.”

“I was,” Kayla admits with a nod of her head “but your mother told me you were worried…”

“Worried about what?”

“The End of the Year Battle Royal.”

“Oh, yeah…” Marie sighs and shakes her head “…no, no, I’m fine.”

Kayla frowns. “I don’t believe you.”

Kayla places a hand upon her shoulder. “Tell me what’s wrong, Marie.”

“You wouldn’t understand.” Marie insists, shaking her head.

“Try me.” Kayla says with a knowing grin.

“How could you understand?  You’ve always been so good, so great.  People have always looked up to you and respected you.  But me…”

Marie’s voice trails off.  She shakes her head with a sense of sadness.

“…I need this in order to prove that I can still be a legitimate contender in this sport.”

“You don’t need a win to prove you are a legitimate contender, Marie.” Kayla assures her. “Just get in there, kick some ass, and make some waves.”

“Yeah but see that’s thing, I’m not even sure I can do that.”

“For the love of God…”

Kayla rears back and, without any other warning, strikes the heavy bag with her right foot, narrowly missing her niece’s head.  Marie is wide-eyed and open-jawed with shock and surprise.  She turns around to face her aunt Kayla.

“What the hell was that all about?”

“That was a warning.  Pull your head out of your ass or next time I aim for your head.”

Marie stares at Kayla for a few moments before nodding her head.  “Fine.”

“Now listen to me,” Kayla pokes a finger into her niece’s chest “you are good.  You are real good.  Do not let this battle royal get to you.  This is not the end all be all.  Not for you.”

“Kind of hypocritical for you to say, don’t you think?” Marie asks. “I mean, aren’t you in it for the same thing?”

“Oh I am in this battle royal to make an impact, sure, but the difference is that I believe in myself.  I have confidence in my abilities.  I know what I can do when that bell rings at the end of the year special.  I do not doubt myself.  I know that, win or lose, I will prove to SCW that I can get the job done on my own, without your mother’s help.  That’s where you and I differ.  I have confidence.  That’s what you need right now, Marie.  You need confidence in yourself.”

Kayla reaches out and grabs Marie by her shoulders.  She smirks knowingly.

“Now, can you get that confidence?  Or do I have to kick your head off your shoulders?”

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On Camera

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The camera feed begins to roll.  Immediately we see the view of the floor and we are met with the sound of heels clicking across concrete floor.  Eventually someone’s feet comes into view.  They are feminine feet encased in black high heeled strappy shoes.  She keeps walking for awhile until she eventually comes to a stop.  Then the camera begins to zoom outward so as to get a view of this woman in full length.  This is Kayla Jones and she is wearing a black shimmering v-neckline cocktail dress with a hemline that stops just above the knee.  Her long red hair hangs to just below the shoulders.

“The New Year is all about new beginnings.  Am I right?  Seriously, just about everyone the world over will be making a New Year’s Resolution, which is literally something you want to do differently in the new year than what you did the previous year.”

“How does that apply to me?”  Kayla motions to herself. “Simply put, this previous year in Supreme Championship Wrestling was rather uneventful for me.”

She nods her head vehemently. “Don’t go and bring up that one tag title win I had with Angelica, because while that was good, that was still something we did together and not something I did on my own.  When I first arrived in SCW, I had to fight Silas Mason and Silas World for my own sister’s freedom and those bastards damn near gave me another neck injury.”

She shakes her head. “Clearly NOT a good year for yours truly…”

Jones smirks knowingly “…but that was last year.  That year is over with.  A near year is about to dawn and my new year’s resolution is to return to the spot I used to have, a spot that I should never have lost; a spot as one of the best wrestlers ever, bar none, regardless of singles, tag team, hardcore, submission, it doesn’t matter.  You name it I can do it.”

“So don’t get me wrong.  I do love teaming with my sister Angelica and the Sisterhood will continue to live on.  But I am tired of being cataloged and labeled as a tag team wrestler when I know I can do oh so much more than that, when I know that my own talents and abilities far supersede that of just a mere tag team wrestler.  I am one of the best wrestlers and biggest threats in this end of the year battle royal SCW is hosting and anyone who doubts that, anyone who underestimates me, they are in for a rude awakening.”

“The two-hundred and fifty thousand dollars is good and all, but if I win it I will donate it to charity.  Same with the car.  The biggest spoils of that end of the year battle royal is the bragging rights that go with victory.  The biggest spoils of that end of the year battle royal is the opportunity for me to make an impact, to make waves, and to prove to Supreme Championship Wrestling that I am more than just a tag team wrestler…oh so much more…”

Kayla nods her head “…that’s right, ladies and gentlemen, expect yours truly, Kayla Jones, to come out guns blazing, throwing everything but the kitchen sink at anyone who gets in her way, because the SCW End of the Year Special is going to be my night, whether any of you like it or not, and if you don’t like it, well, I’ll just kick your teeth right down your throat.”